i'd let you punch me any day
by whizz
Summary: Maybe it was because he felt challenged with her; she was just so unlike the other girls he knew. Kyo/Arisa


**anime/manga; **Fruits Basket  
**pairing; **Kyo/Arisa  
**warnings; **none, I think.  
**disclaimer; **I do not own Fruits Basket or any of the characters used.

&**&**&

She wasn't like the other girls Kyo knew.

She most definitely wasn't like Tohru; sweet, kind-hearted, optimistic Tohru.

She was, on the contrary, hot-headed, confident and _loud. _Wherever Kyo went her voice would always be heard over the meaningless buzzing of the people around her. It was like she demanded the attention - or maybe the attention demanded _her._

Sometimes, the voice even followed him home, ringing in his ears and echoing in his head. It drove him absolutely crazy because he didn't understand it at all.

The only thing she and Tohru had in common was that they were both pretty.

Well, Tohru was pretty in an obvious way; _cute _would be the ideal description. Anyone who'd see her would go '_aww!_' when they would lay eyes upon her huge reindeer-eyes and long hair, the pastel-colored skirts that flowed about her scrawny legs and the timidness she possessed.

She, on the other hand, was pretty despite her trying to hide it. Tall and lean (_a body fit for a model_, he remembered some of his classmates giggle) with a controlled posture; back always arched and proud, chin tilted upwards. Her blonde hair flowed down her back, smooth and straight. She had a sharp nose, thin mouth and cold eyes.

Perhaps, Kyo guessed, she was more beautiful than pretty.

(It didn't change the fact that she scared the shit out of ninety-six percent of the school).

Arisa Uotani wasn't like the other girls Kyo knew.

She wasn't like Hanajima; mysterious, quiet, scary-as-hell Hanajima.

Wait, re-wind; maybe she _was_ scary as hell to some, but not like Hanajima, who was just downright frightening with her monotone voice and chilling aura, seemingly made for a scary movie.

Arisa was scary because she was strong and didn't think twice about threatening somebody or start a fight if necessary. It wouldn't be the first (or the last) time that she'd be crowned the winner of a street-brawl.

Maybe that was why the entire school shakily turned the other way when she would pass in the hallway, the whispered words and hurried glances not even close to breaking her stride (_"I'm gonna be a model one day, don't cha know?"_).

It was a shame, really, Kyo thought; people who didn't know her missed the person that she really was.

And what she really was, was a great friend. To Tohru and to Hanajima and to any other lucky human being who had managed to break through her stone-facade to see what was hiding behind it. She'd always be there when they needed her and she would protect and defend them even if the whole world was against them.

Kyo respected her for that.

(Not that he'd _ever_ admit that for the next thousand years).

Yeah, Arisa sure wasn't like the other girls Kyo knew.

Wasn't like Kagura; crazy, violent, _clingy _Kagura.

All right, Arisa was violent and - from time to time - a little crazy, but it could never be compared to Kagura (who'd tear a wall down if Kyo didn't pick up his phone the first time it ringed).

Kagura was just downright annoying with her non-stop babbling and constant love-confessions. Arisa wasn't like that; she talked a lot but she only had important things to say and she'd never make a fool out of herself by chasing some guy around.

She'd snort and laugh at the few guys (God bless their poor souls) who actually managed to build enough courage up to confess to her. Arisa would give them a look that said '_are you kidding me?' _and then she would shout something about real men and not weak little boys who couldn't keep up with her.

She wasn't like Kisa (he'd say she was the exact opposite for obvious reasons), wasn't like Rin (but it would be kind of interesting to see a fight between them going down), wasn't like Machi (who'd give everybody the silent treatment and didn't even have her own opinions where Arisa most certainly did), wasn't like Ren (who the hell was like Ren anyway?), wasn't like Kimi (actually, Arisa would beat girls like Kimi into a pulp without a single moment of hesitation).

Wasn't like anybody.

She was confusing and captivating and unusual and-

(_and-_)

-Kyo found himself wanting to know more about her.

"Hey, Orangey! Watch out!"

The warning was followed by a ball that hit him perfectly in the back of his head, not even giving him half a second to react.

"Why don't _you _watch it, Yankee!" he immediately snapped, crimson eyes blazing as they were trained on her tall frame.

"Not my fault you can't defend yourself", she teased with a smirk, picking the ball up from the ground next to him where he'd sat, lost in his thoughts, mere seconds ago.

"Oh yeah? I'll show you defence!" he yelled, accepting her unspoken challenge in a heartbeat as he dashed forward, trying to grab the ball.

And as her ringing laughter and playful taunts echoed across the schoolyard ("_What? That all ya got, Orangey?_") he realized something.

She was the only girl that could keep up with him, the only girl with skin thick enough to someday, maybe, break through his own shield just like Tohru had done for her years ago.

He smirked as she punched him square in the face, his feet wobbling a little as he vowed that he would knock her out if only she wasn't a woman (which she answered with a '_whatever ya say!_').

She was simply Arisa Uotani, nothing less and nothing more; it was her way or the highway, what you saw was what you got, and-

And Kyo wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

i like this couple a lot. they're just both so stubborn. 3


End file.
